5 Best Shopping in Jamsil and Eastern Seoul, Seoul

Fans of K-Beauty will enjoy a pampering day at Amore Seongsu, a lifestyle cosmetics showroom which offers reservations for testing out makeup and taking classes from professional makeup artists in a beautiful garden setting. It's not exactly a shopping experience, but rather a spa-like service that allows you to sample 1,800 products from 40 brands. There's a rooftop to enjoy in addition to the garden-view rooms, and you can order tea from O'Sulloc's Tea House on the second floor. Booking a two-hour class means you can also take the products you like home.

Seoul's largest wholesale agricultural products market, set in an expansive complex, is also a major destination for meat and seafood. This is a real, functioning place of commerce, and if you're in the mood for meat or seafood, you can haggle with the vendors on the first floor and then take your spoils to restaurants situated above. While the experience may be a bit rough and tumble, you'll save a bit of won compared to other destinations in Seoul, and gain so much in experience.

This traditional street market offers a nice break from the high-end, super shiny luxury shopping that dominates the area. The vendors sell fresh fruits, vegetables, seafood, and meat, along with dry goods, houseware, clothing, and many other practical items. There is also a lot of cooked food available for eating on the spot or taking out, such as roast chicken and barbecue pork, making it a popular stop for people heading to a baseball game at nearby Jamsil Stadium.

As if Lotte didn't have enough of a presence in Jamsil, they also have a department store right across from their mall. This store opened in 1988 to coincide with the Olympic Games and predates the rest of the Lotte properties, which makes it seem a bit dated as a result. Don't let the years fool you, though: this is a dialed-in place of modern commerce with luxury brands and everything else you would expect from such a mega store. The real selling point is the food court, which offers a wide range of Korean and international choices. If you're in Jamsil and can't decide where to eat, look no further.

Opened in 2014, this mammoth shopping center includes luxury brand shops, a Lotte Mart, a Hi-Mart electronics store, scores of restaurants, a spa, a movie theater, an aquarium, and a concert hall. It's shiny, impressive, and immaculate, and it's worth a visit just to stroll around and bathe in the splendor of hypercommercialism in action.